Brazil's Cielo says mulling CEO choices after resignation

SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazil’s Cielo SA said it was considering various options to replace CEO Eduardo Gouveia after he resigned on Friday, just 18 months after taking the payment processor’s helm, including potential candidates from banks that control it.

Cielo, which is struggling with fierce competition from various domestic fintech start-ups, named Chief Financial Officer Clovis Poggetti Jr as interim CEO. It plans to name a permanent successor to Gouveia, who said he decided to step down for unspecified personal and family reasons, within 60 days.

A new chief executive could be chosen from Cielo’s controlling shareholders Banco do Brasil SA, Banco Bradesco SA or from elsewhere, investor relations head Victor Schabbel said on a conference call.

After falling around 6 percent in the morning following resignation, Cielo shares were up 1.6 percent in early afternoon at 16.55 reais.

Cielo Chairman Marcelo Noronha, also an executive vice-president at Bradesco, said he would have daily calls with the interim chief executive and weekly meetings with the management team until a new CEO is named.

Brazil’s largest payment solutions firm has been losing market share to new competitors such as Stone Pagamentos SA and PagSeguro Digital Ltd.

Noronha, however, said Gouveia’s departure will not lead to a change in the company’s strategy. “There will not be a change in direction,” he said. “Cielo will continue to defend its leadership in all Brazilian regions.”

Year-over-year, Cielo’s number of points of sale decreased by around 14 percent in March, according to its first-quarter results statement. Revenues also fell.